Games to Play
by thosehayffiefeels
Summary: Haymitch tries to figure out what happened to Effie as she tries to repress the memories of the Games the Capitol played with her when she was held prisoner. Mockingjay AU Hayffie
1. Chapter 1

_AU Hayffie set after the war, but with flashbacks into the month prior._

Effie was not a heavy drinker. Haymitch had only ever seen her with a flute of champagne during the Victory Tour, or a small glass of white wine with dinner before a year's Games began. Now, here she was, in Haymitch's old house in 12, raiding the kitchen for a bottle.

"You're not going to find anything there." Haymitch said in a soft voice. He didn't know what had happened that changed her so much. Since they rescued her from the Capitol after the war, Effie had been different. She started to remind him of, well, himself; she now couldn't leave her house without a bottle in her hand.

"Why'd you have to go and sober up?" She asked, not turning around to look at him. She tossed her empty bottle to the side and leaned back from her search, defeated. "They cut me off of my supply."

"I've been there." He said, sitting down next to her, trying to get a look at her face. Effie's hair was matted and very dirty, and she still wore the pajamas they gave her the day they rescued her from the Capitol.

No one ever told him what happened to her there. They couldn't find her when they went in to save Peeta, Johanna, and Annie. Only after the war, when they were cleaning out the training center, did they find her on the lowest sub level huddled in a corner, with bruises up and down her body, too weak to even walk.

"Look, I don't know what happened, but you can talk to me." Haymitch said.

Effie shook her head, her eyes in that distant place she never really left, "No, I can't." She tried to stand up, swaying in place. Haymitch caught her before she fell over.

"Why don't you lay down Effie, you can stay here for a bit." He suggested.

Effie laughed, "You don't have to help me anymore. You rescued me, you've done your part. You don't have to talk to me, or act like you care- you don't even have to pretend to like me anymore- although I guess you've never really done that one." As she stalked out the door, Haymitch was grateful she wasn't wearing her high heels- she would have surely twisted both of her ankles by now. On the other hand, Effie without the outfits wasn't his Effie.

"I care about you." he told her.

Effie could feel tears pooling in her eyes, tugging at the memories she worked so hard to repress, "I wish I could believe you." Without looking back, she shut the door behind her and collapsed into the icy snow.

...

1 MONTH PRIOR

When Katniss electrified the arena, Effie was in her suite, waiting for Haymitch to return and bring her news from the sponsors. Usually she went with him, but this time he told her to stay put, that he had to run an errand anyways and he would just bring word back to her. He had seemed strange, but Effie shrugged it off, blaming his newfound sobriety for his sudden interest in helping.

The screens turned black and within minutes, Peacekeepers swarmed her suite. A year ago she would've thought they were taking her to safety, that she could trust them as she always had, but she knew better now. Now, she knew that Katniss started the revolution, and she was left behind in the Capitol and being taken prisoner.

She tried to fight back, turning over chairs to block the path between the Peacekeepers and herself. She kicked them, stepped on their feet with her high heels, but it was no use. Soon enough she was handcuffed. Then, Effie felt a twinge of pain in her right arm and everything went dark.

…

"Ahhh, Miss Trinket, waking up? You put up quite a fight." A voice drew Effie out of her dreamless sleep.

Effie's eyes darted open, and in front of her was Caesar Flickerman with pure white hair and a pristine white suit on. They were on his stage, him in his usual seat, and her handcuffed to the seat across from him, Peacekeepers on either side of her. She remembered the altercation that brought her here. "What do you want from me?"

Caesar wasted no time in getting to the point. "I'll ask you once- what do you know of the revolution?"

"I knew nothing of it until Katniss fired that arrow." Effie said

"You're lying!" Caesar hissed back at her. "Don't make things harder for yourself, Miss Trinket. Tell us what you know, or face the consequences."

"I don't know anything," Effie said. "I've always just been the Capitol escort! Why would anyone tell me anything?" Effie tried to make it sound like she didn't care about the victors that were so important to her now.

"Because you were part of their team- Cinna, Portia, all of them were corrupt once they worked with 12."

"I don't know anything." Effie said again.

Caesar smiled, "We'll see about that." He waved at the Peacekeepers to take Effie away.

For the next two hours, the Peacekeepers did all they could to get answers from Effie- tracker jacker venom, jabberjays, beatings. Nothing worked.

Eventually, Caesar came back in. "Anything you want to tell me? Anything to make this stop?"

Effie recoiled at the sight of him, "There's nothing I would tell you, even if I could."

"But you don't know anything." Caesar said plainly. Effie shook her head. "And they left you here?"

"They'll come back for me. We're a team. They kept me in the dark to protect me." Effie was exhausted. She wasn't sure she was saying these things to Caesar or herself. They would be back for her, right?

Caesar cackled, "They didn't tell you anything, they left you here- they hated you! Why in Panem do you think they would come back for you. Do you see your clothes? Your wig? They would never come back for you- you're too much like us. Not that we'd want a traitor like you either. " He paused, "You were between sides, Miss Trinket, and now you must pay for that."

One Peacekeeper spoke up, "What do we do with her?"

Caesar feigned thinking, tapping his finger against his chin, "What to do… what to do…. Well, we can't use her as bait, like Peeta. We can't get information. We can't let her go. Take her down to the basement, with Spade. He'll know just what to do."

Caesar was right, no one was coming for her. As Effie fell back against the wall in defeat, the Peacekeepers swarmed her and, once again, the room went dark.

When Effie woke up again, she was upright, inside of a narrow tube. She didn't know where she was, but she had an uneasy feeling. The tube started to rise, and it was filling with light. She was wearing a light jacket, stretchy black pants, and a white t shirt. She could easily tell that her natural hair was out, in a tight ponytail. She felt dressed up, like a doll, unsure of what they did to her while she was unconscious. The tube raised up to a platform facing 23 other platforms and a cornucopia. The artificial sun glimmered off of the mockingjay pin on her jacket as a voice announced "Let the 76th Hunger Games begin!"


	2. Chapter 2

_Alright, Chapter 2 because I couldn't stop writing. I hope you enjoy. This picks up right where the last chapter left off in the flashback. There will be more Hayffie to come in later chapters, but first you need to find out what happened to Effie. Enjoy!_

 _..._

 _Hunger Games? What?_ Effie tried to remember what had happened last as the minute countdown ticked on the cornucopia ahead- Caesar said she was going to the basement- not the arena! But here she was, was this real? Was she really going to have to fight for her life? Effie looked at the other tributes. 30 seconds left.

The arena was a grassy plain, with no visible trees anywhere. The only structures that stood above ground level were the platforms and the cornucopia.

She scanned their faces, hoping not to see a familiar one, but the odds were clearly not in her favor. The first face she spotted was Portia's a few platforms to the right of her. Portia wasn't looking back. Would she ally with Effie? Effie's stomach churned at the thought of having to actually ally with someone, with actually being in the Games. 10 seconds.

Effie shifted slightly, trying to decide whether to run to the cornucopia or not. 8 seconds. Clearly this was all a Capitol trap, but was it really happening? Or were there electrodes plugged into her head making her think she was here? Was this just a punishment, a way to conveniently get rid of the escort who sent so many kids to the exact same place. The irony. 4 seconds.

Effie knew, even if it was all in her head that she needed to survive. She was going to run away in the opposite direction. Then she saw the most familiar face directly across from her and her heart dropped. Haymitch. 0 seconds.

Effie stepped off of her platform and ran away from the cornucopia, but she kept looking back. Why was Haymitch here? He was at the cornucopia, already with an axe and a backpack in his hands. He spotted her from across the battleground and started running towards her. Effie started running towards him too, she was going to stay with him until the end. He would know what was going on, and he would protect her.

Haymitch quickly closed the distance between them, dropping his backpack onto the grass. Before Effie reached out to take his hand, but that's not what Haymitch wanted. Before Effie could react, he swung his axe around, sinking it deep into her left shoulder.

Effie cried out in pain, stumbling backward, clutching her arm. Haymitch continued towards her, raising his axe to swing again, "Any last words, Miss Trinket?"

Effie shook her head- Haymitch would never call her Miss Trinket. She was always "Princess" or "Eff" to him. What was happening? This couldn't be real! Effie darted to the left, Haymitch's axe landing in the ground. As he lifted it back up, Effie stole his backpack off the ground and started running in the opposite direction.

She stumbled, trying not to scream in pain and draw attention to herself. Most of the tributes were in combat with each other, but she still hadn't heard a canon yet. She just kept running, afraid to stop and catch her breath. She looked behind her, still running, and saw Haymitch sprinting after her.

Effie ran faster, still looking behind her at Haymitch. She turned her head forward again and saw that she was at the edge of the plain. She tried to stop, but she couldn't in time and tumbled down the steep cliff ahead of her, into a bed of purple flowers, reminding her of the ones she wore during the reaping for the 74th Hunger Games.

The flowers had softened her fall, but Effie still hurt all over. It was only a matter of time before Haymitch would find her again. She ran over to the base of the cliff a few meters over, where it was slightly hollowed out at the base. She tucked herself in as far as she could, trying to cover herself with flowers.

She could hear footsteps above her, and Haymitch's heavy breathing. "Where'd you go, Trinket?" he growled. Effie turned her head, into the cliff, not wanting to see what happened next. This wasn't Haymitch- this had to be the Capitol. They were messing with her. But was everybody in here like him,or were they prisoners like her? Should she try to find Portia?

The Haymitch above cursed and stalked off, clearly unable to see Effie. She let out a breath and turned back around. The backpack was a pillow between the rocky cliff and her back. Effie considered getting up, trying to devise a plan. But her arm hurt too much- it was excruciating . She took off her jacket to inspect the wound fully. It was a deep gash that wasn't going to close any time soon.

Effie looked in the backpack, finding a few packs of crackers, a canteen filled with what she assumed was water, a spare t-shirt, and a roll of gauze. She poured a capful of water onto the wound, cleaning it out. Effie took out the gauze, wrapping it carefully around her arm. She knew it was likely to get infected without medicine, but there was nothing she could do about it now.

Once her wound was taken care of, Effie sat back, defeated. She didn't want to move, or breathe, or exist. Without hope, Effie fell asleep, wishing she could go back to the time when she was ignorant and stupid and happy.

…

Effie woke up quickly, her eyes blinking open to a distorted scene in front of her. The edges of her vision were hazy and she couldn't quite focus on a particular part of what she was seeing. Haymitch walked towards her, swinging his axe back and forth carelessly. Vines started to grow out of the ground, tying themselves around Effie's legs and arms, rooting her to the spot. She half-heartedly tried to move but it was no use.

Effie turned her head to the right, seeing Caesar Flickerman, sitting on a stool in the middle of the field of flowers. He looked at her with a mock sadness, "Well, folks. It seems to be the end of the road for our escort , here. I wish I could say she will be missed, but I would be lying. Now all we need is the sound of that canon and Effie Trinket will no longer matter." Caesar started to laugh, harder and harder. With each laugh, monarch butterflies started flying out of his mouth. He started choking as more and more escaped from him.

The butterflies circled around him as he fell off of his stool, clutching his throat. Once he stopped moving, the butterflies flocked to Effie. They started landing on her face, covering her vision. Effie shook her head, trying to get them to move. She saw Haymitch in front of her, just starting at her, his axe no longer in his hands.

"Haymitch!" she called out. "Please, help me.

Haymitch just stare back. "Goodnight, Princess." he responded. The butterflies covered her entirely, their wings turned into scalding hot metal, burning every inch of her skin. Effie screamed out, closing her eyes to keep the butterflies out.

Then, she felt something heavy cover her mouth, muting her screams. When Effie opened her eyes again, she could see clearly. There was no Haymitch, no Caesar, no butterflies. Only Portia. She stopped screaming.

Portia hesitantly took her hand from Effie's mouth, "I heard you screaming and I figured you needed help. You were having a nightmare or something."

Effie shook her head. She shuffled through her backpack, her hands closing on the canteen. She dumped the contents onto the grass, which immediately shriveled up. "It wasn't a nightmare. It was tracker jacker venom." She paused, then took the gauze off of her wound, now swollen with the venom.

Portia gasped then took out a flask from her backpack. "Don't worry," she told Effie, "It's water. I filled it myself."

Portia poured the water over Effie's wound and it immediately went down in size. Effie took the spare t-shirt from her bag and, after thoroughly inspecting it, tied it around her arm. "Thank you,Portia."

"Of course," Portia nodded. She pulled a pack of crackers out of her bag and offered one to Effie. Effie didn't know if this was really Portia, but she did just save her life, so she figured she could trust her for now. She would ask her later, once she could push the tracker jacker scene from her mind. As they ate in silence, Effie wiped at her face, where she could still feel the butterfly wings beat against her.

...

 _So, a fake Haymitch and tracker jacker venom. All will be explained in chapters to come. Please let me know what you think of the story. It might be a little confusing at the moment, but hopefully it will all make sense soon._


	3. Chapter 3

_So hopefully this chapter explains some things that the last one didn't, though there will probably be more questions. In this chapter, the story goes back to post-war District 12 where the first chapter started. To make things less confusing, I just labeled POST WAR where that part starts and FLASHBACK where the flashback picks back up._

 _..._

"How long has it been?" Effie asked.

"About a day." Portia answered. That meant Effie had been out for almost twenty three hours. Portia continued, "I scouted out some of the other tributes before I found you."

"Did they seem… strange to you?" Effie asked. She whispered, "I'm not sure if some of them are real. Like… this is the Capitol messing with us or something." That was the only explanation she could allow herself to believe. Despite their fights, she couldn't imagine Haymitch actually trying to kill her. And Portia, she saved Effie, gave her food. She was sure Portia was real, that she could trust her.

Portia nodded, "The ones I've seen… they can't be human. They aren't fighting with each other, but they all have weapons on them- not one canon has gone off yet. They just keep moving, as if they're looking for something."

"Are they mutts?" Effie asked. If it was her and Portia locked up in an arena with a bunch of mutts- well, she couldn't think of a good outcome.

"I think so," Portia explained, "Occasionally, while they're moving, they freeze up and start glitching, like the Capitol didn't finish developing them before they sent them in here."

"The one, that looks like Haymitch, he called me Miss Trinket. That's not what Haymitch ever called me."

"I think the mutts were programmed to act like who they look like, but they might not've had much to go off of."

"So we just need to stay hidden from them?" Effie asked.

"Yes," Portia agreed, "But we can't stay here- they'll find us too quickly. Can you move?"

Effie stood up slowly. She knew she could walk fine, the wound in her shoulder wouldn't affect that, but she felt emotionally drained. "I'll be fine."

Portia understood, "The tracker jacker venom went directly into your arm, it'll be a while before it's out of your system completely."

"It's not just that- it's everything. I just don't understand why we're here. Why did they put us in an arena?"

"I was in a cell, before this. Then Peacekeepers came in, and all of a sudden here I am." Portia explained. "And I intend on finding a way out."

POST WAR

Haymitch went outside later in the day to feed his geese and found Effie, passed out in the snow. He dropped everything he was carrying and picked her up, laying her on the couch across from his fire place. He put some blankets on her, but she was ice cold and soaking wet from the snow. After a minute of trying to figure out what to do, he called Katniss, insisting she come over and bring a pair of pajamas for Effie.

Once Katniss changed her, Haymitch sat next to the couch, tracing circles on the back of Effie's hand. She was still cold, but the fire was warming her up.

"What happened to her?" Katniss asked, genuinely concerned.

Haymitch shook his head, "That's what I'd like to know." He thought back to the Effie he knew during the games- bright and bubbly, too happy for her own good, always concerned over her appearance. Now, he could hardly recognize her- dark circles, dirty hair, no will to continue.

It made Haymitch angry. He wanted to stay with her, but he needed answers. "Watch her, make sure she doesn't find another bottle." Haymitch growled at Katniss.

"Where are you going?" Katniss asked as he ran around, packing a bag.

"The Capitol- I need answers."

FLASHBACK

Portia and Effie crossed the field of purple flowers, passed the lake where Portia refilled her flask, and were now walking down a grassy hillside, even farther from the cornucopia.

"I'd imagine the mutts spread out, to make it easier to find us. So, at least we may only have to fight them one at a time." Portia contemplated.

"Yes," Effie agreed, "But we don't have anything to fight them with. Are you sure we shouldn't have headed back to the cornucopia?"

Portia shook her head, "It would be so risky… they probably have even more traps set up up there."

Effie laughed, "This whole place is a trap- I can't imagine where we are would make much of a difference." Then, she stopped in her tracks as she came to a realization. She started searching her legs, then her arms, then her neck for what she was looking for. "Trackers- do you think they have trackers on us? We might not even be able to hide." Effie kept searching but she couldn't see or feel a tracker underneath her skin.

"Maybe they didn't put one on us? I can't imagine they would broadcast this… there's a war going on- maybe they just threw us in here and thats that."

"Then maybe there isn't a chance, even if we survive, that we'll make it out of here. They just expect us to die, in an arena." Effie shivered.

She could see that Portia didn't want to agree, but knew she was right. "We can still try."

Effie shrugged, feeling the hope drain out of her. Portia continued to lead the way down the hill, as Effie lagged farther and farther back, loosing the will to continue on. Then, Portia gasped. Ahead of them were a group of three other tributes.

Portia turned and started running back up the hill, dragging Effie along behind her. They made it back to the lake before the other tributes caught up to them. One, who resembled a District 12 tribute Effie remembered sending off to the Games the year before Katniss and Peeta, took out a throwing knife, and aimed directly for Effie, when Portia ran at her from the side and knocked her over.

The next tribute, Effie didn't have time to see who it was, catapulted himself onto her, sending her to the ground and knocking the wind out of her. He looked as though he was about to punch her, then, he stopped and his eyes glassed over for a moment. Effie had time to shove him off of her before he started moving again. The third tribute came running at her, but Portia stopped him too, holding the throwing knife from the first one.

"Run!" Portia told Effie. Again, they ran, even faster, until they reached the cliff. Effie climbed up first, followed by Portia. She could feel the skin on her hands start to tear against the jagged rocks, but she made it up and onto the flat ground.

Once Portia was up, too, they crossed the plain, only stopping at the cornucopia to grab the first things they could find; a knife, bow and arrow, and a spear, before running across and climbing down the opposite side of the cliff. At the bottom of this side were giant boulders, with cracks in between them. Effie found a big enough gap between two of the boulders and she jumped down it, quickly followed by Portia. It was dark, but there was room, and they could hide; for now.

"Do you think we lost them?" Effie breathed.

Portia nodded, "They didn't follow us up the cliff."

Effie looked down at her hands; they were bleeding with small cuts from climbing. She looked at Portia, wondering if she had any injuries, but her hands were fine- not one scratch.

"Thanks for saving me back there." Effie said.

Portia shook her head, "It was nothing- you would've done the same." Effie nodded, but she realized she might not have had to. Once Effie was out of sight, the other tributes didn't fight Portia, they only ever attacked Effie. Could Portia be one of the mutts? Effie tried to shake the thought from her mind. Portia had only helped Effie since she found her.

"One of the others- I recognized her. She was one of my tributes- never made it past the cornucopia. I-I don't think I can kill one of them, when it came down to it… I already killed them once." Effie said quietly.

Portia replied, "You didn't kill them- and it's not really them, is it? Just mutts designed to look like people you knew- that we knew."

Portia had to be real, Effie decided- she was still the way she remembered her- kind and caring. The Haymitch that was in here, he was nothing like the real one. Effie wanted to put the thought behind her, but then something happened. As Portia sat down next to Effie, her eyes glassed over and she froze up like the other tribute had earlier. She was a mutt.

...

 _Alright… that's Chapter 3! Please let me know what you think so far._


	4. Chapter 4

_Alright, so Chapter 4! This one focuses a bit more on Haymitch… and he's about to find some stuff so_ _eep!_

 _..._

Effie watched as Portia fell asleep that night, between the boulders. She decided against telling Portia about what she saw. Despite her being a mutt, Effie truly believed Portia had no idea what she was. She was probably programmed to befriend Effie, and, when the time came, kill her… or at least lead her to another group of tributes accidentally. Or maybe Portia was a flaw in the system, that the Capitol made a mistake with her, like when they accidentally bred mockingjays.

All Effie knew was that she was alone with a group of mutts, and she needed out. And maybe Portia was her way out. Maybe Portia could escape too, and somehow find a way to keep living. She was too much like the Portia Effie had always known, and Effie wasn't going to let her go, not after she saved her life.

Effie eventually drifted off to sleep as well, but was woken up shortly after to the sound of screams.

"EFFIE!" It wasn't Portia- it wasn't even a woman. It was a man. It was Haymitch. "EFFIE HELP ME PLEASE!" Effie climbed from between the boulders and searched for Haymitch. But all she found was a lone jabberjay circling above them.

As Haymitch's screams tore through the silence, Effie curled into a ball, covering her ears with her hands. Portia climbed out from between the boulders, holding their weapons and bags. She spotted the jabberjay, too, then said, "We have to get out of here. With a jabberjay screaming your name, the others will know where to find us. We have to go now."

She tried to move Effie, but Effie was grounded to the boulder, clutching her was, trying to mute the screams. "I can't." she cried.

Portia held her hands over Effie's and looked her in the eyes, "Yes, you know its not real- nothing here is real. We have to go."

Effie shook her head, but got up and followed Portia across the boulders.

POST WAR

Once Haymitch arrived in the Capitol, he wasted no time in getting to the old training center. After a quick call to Paylor, he was granted full access to the building. He had to go down two elevators, climb down 8 flights of stairs, and go down another, smaller elevator shaft with a guard at his side to get to the lowest sub level of the center.

When they got to the entrance of the basement, the guard paused, "I don't believe you'll find anything down here. I searched it myself once the escort was removed. None of the computers turn on, and most of the rooms are empty" Then, he unlocked the door.

Haymitch paused in the doorway, "What was your name?"

"Commander Becks."

"Well, Becks," Haymitch said, a twinge of disgust in his voice, "Let's get a couple of things straight. 1. That _escort_ worked for the rebel cause and she is very important to me so I don't want you talking about her like she's Capitol trash you picked up on the street. 2. Her name is Effie- learn it. and 3. You'll be surprised how much more you'll find if you actually care about the information."

He walked through the doorway, and Becks started to follow. But Haymitch stopped him again, "And one more thing- if I do, in fact, find something that you missed, you better work really hard to keep that Commander title." Haymitch then continued to take the access key from Becks then slam the door in his face.

He walked down the hallway. It was narrow, with no doors on either side for the first 20 feet. Then, there was a door on the right. Haymitch unlocked it, but there was nothing inside. He still left the door open, so he could check it again after. The next three doors he tried also lead to vacant rooms. But the in the fifth, he found a room with a solitary desk and chair in it. The tag at the end of the desk said that the office he was in belonged to someone named Spade.

There was still a computer on top of the desk. There was a padlock on it that prevented Haymitch from even opening it. There were locks, too on the desk, but Haymitch knew that those weren't as fragile, as he promptly tried prying the doors open with his pocket knife. When that didn't work, he slammed the computer against the lock, and it fell right off, not a scratch to either one.

Out of the largest drawer, he took out a stack of rolled up papers. Haymitch unraveled them on the desk and found they were blueprints to the training center.

"What in the…" Haymitch muttered to himself as he looked through them. The prints clearly showed a large, nearly 600 meter gap between this floor and the floor above.

Following the lead, Haymitch took the chair into the empty room with the lowest ceiling, and climbed onto it, lifting a panel from the ceiling. Above it was another panel a couple of feet up. Then above that, concrete. He felt around the concrete, and found a latch. Haymitch pried it open with his knife, and a section of the concrete fell open, like a trap door.

A bright light shone into the dark room from above, nearly blinding Haymitch. He jumped up to the ledge of concrete and pulled himself up, and through the trap door.

He paused for a moment, catching his breath. It took too much of his strength to do much of anything anymore. But this was for Effie. So if it took his last breath, Haymitch would find out what happened. He looked up, and nearly fell backward back through the door- he was staring into the hollow of a giant cornucopia.

FLASHBACK

The jabberjay continued to follow as Portia led a sobbing Effie across the boulders. Effie knew that with Portia leading them, she might unknowingly stumble onto the mutts, but Effie didn't care. Even mutts would be sweet relief from Haymitch's screams.

Effie could barely see, with tears stinging in her eyes. She kept stumbling on the boulders and Portia had to tell her every time to jump, when they reached the end of one.

"Effie, Effie, we have to keep going." Portia willed her to go on, "We're at the end of them, we just need to jump." Effie wiped her eyes for a split second, then covered her ears again to mute the screams. She took a breath then jumped off the boulder, rolling out of it so she didn't twist her ankle. Once they landed on the ground, this one compact dirt, no grass or flowers to soften the blow, the jabberjay stopped. Effie watched as the bird flew back from the edge.

Effie curled into a ball. She basked in the silence, but it scared her nearly as much. It seemed too quiet.

"We should… keep going…" She told the still standing Portia, as Effie brushed herself off.

Portia nodded and pointed toward a forest of tall trees ahead. They started running, peeking around the trees, looking for tributes. Once they could no longer see the boulders behind them, they stopped to catch their breath. Effie looked around, and at the endless forest ahead.

She heard a deep, panting breath and froze. It wasn't coming from between the trees, but from above- _in_ one of the trees. Effie looked up as the Haymitch mutt jumped down from a high branch.

...

 _Alright… so another cliff hanger… let me know what you think! Thank you for reading!_


	5. Chapter 5

_I know it's been a while since the last update. Hopefully you like this chapter! Please let me know what you think._

 _..._

POST WAR:

Haymitch's eyes were glued to the cornucopia in front of him. It was ransacked, all weapons gone, only a few spilled apples remained on the floor of it.

Haymitch was still standing next to the trap door. His heart was pounding, and he felt the need for a drink overpowering him. He tried to shake it off. Flashes of his games tore through his mind and he tried to fight them off. He needed to look around, he told himself, for Effie. This was the answer, he could feel it.

The light reflected off of the cornucopia and Haymitch couldn't breathe. Anxiety spread to his hands and he was forced to climb back through the trap door. He clutched onto the chair with shaking hands as he climbed down, collapsing onto the floor.

He was sober. He thought that now he was stronger, that he can deal with the memories. But as he sat in that empty room, Haymitch felt weak and scared. As he sat there, he wondered if Effie had sat in that room, too, feeling just as afraid. He couldn't go back, but he needed answers.

Once his heart rate steadied and his hands stopped trembling, Haymitch stepped onto the chair and closed the trap door. Then, he went back to desk in the other room and took the computer as he left through the main door. Becks was still waiting there, looking angry.

"You took my access key." Becks said. He held his hand out, expecting Haymitch to give it back to him.

"You're an idiot." Haymitch grumbled. He pushed Becks aside and lead the way back up through the training center. He left Becks right outside of the center, still keeping the access card- he would be back.

Haymitch crossed the busy streets to a house near President Paylor's. He walked up the ramp and knocked on the door. "Beetee," he called, "it's Haymitch- open up."

FLASHBACK:

Portia tried to step in front of the Haymitch mutt, but he pushed her aside with more force than humanly possible. Effie jumped backward, searching the ground for her weapon- she dropped it when he jumped down to the ground. She spotted her knife on the ground and, as Haymitch barreled towards her, she dived out of the way and grabbed it, discretely tucking it underneath her jacket as he charged towards her again. This time, Portia jumped on his back, pulling him down to the ground for a moment.

Effie moved towards them to help her up, but Haymitch kicked her backwards, his foot hitting the knife which inevitably cut into her stomach. Effie winced and stepped backward, clutching her stomach. Haymitch pried Portia off of him and jumped back at Effie.

She couldn't move in time, and the Haymitch mutt had her cornered against the tree, pressing his arm into her neck. Taking choked breaths, Effie twisted her arm and pulled out the knife that was pressing against her stomach. She brought it up behind him, prepared to use it. Then, he laughed.

"Going to kill me, Princess?"

Effie tried to get past the voice, and the fact that he was calling her Princess. This wasn't Haymitch. This was a cruel mutt meant to kill her. But Effie looked into his eyes- so full of hate. But they were still the same blue she looked to during Katniss and Peeta's games, whenever she heard a cannon and was too scared to look. He was still _a_ Haymitch, and she couldn't bring herself to hurt him.

Effie dropped the knife. The Haymitch mutt snickered, calling her weak. His grip on her tightened, and Effie's vision was starting to go black. But then, the pressure lightened, and Haymitch's eyes lost their focus on her. He sucked in a breath and fell backward, releasing Effie from his hold.

Portia stood behind him, the knife in her hand.

Effie looked down at the unmoving Haymitch. For a moment, she forgot everything. That this was the Haymitch that tried to kill her. That she was in an arena. That the real Haymitch was far from here. Effie dropped to her knees and reached out to touch his face with shaking hands. She sobbed, draping herself over his chest.

Portia was saying something, but Effie couldn't hear a thing other than her own screams. Portia pried Effie off of Haymitch, while Effie kicked, trying to go back. It took a few minutes and a lot of deep breaths before she came to her senses. Effie gave up her resistance towards Portia.

Effie looked back at the Haymitch mutt. Portia stepped in front of her, blocking her view. "That wasn't Haymitch, Effie. Look," she held up the knife, "No blood- he's not human. He's not him." Effie sniffled and nodded. Portia continued, "We have to leave. I may have stopped him, but I don't know if he'll regenerate. Who knows what the Capitol is capable of." Effie nodded again, unable to say anything. She picked up one of the bags off of the forest floor and started walking opposite of the body.

"Thank you," Effie muttered, "for saving me back there."

Portia nodded, "Of course." Effie looked over at her, and she could see that something wasn't right. Portia was realizing that the mutts weren't attacking her like they were attacking Effie. "Do you think I'm a mutt?"

POST WAR:

Beetee had been tinkering with the computer for over an hour. He had gotten the outside lock off, but was still trying unlock the files. Haymitch paced, shooting glances at Beetee every couple of seconds.

"That's not going to make this go any quicker," Beetee told him.

"What will?" Haymitch grumbled.

"Just, stop pacing- it's really distracting. I'm almost in."

Haymitch was ready to call Beetee a liar when another hour had passed and there was still no progress, but then Beetee said, "I'm in."

Haymitch looked at the computer screen. There were codes and files, and he didn't know what any of them meant, but Beetee seemed to. He clicked on one file that led to a 3D diagram of the arena.

"What is this?" Beetee asked. Haymitch explained the arena he found in the training center.

Beetee opened more files and Haymitch watched, but he didn't understand most of them. One file showed a detailed blueprint with a body on it.

"Wait, what is this one?" Haymitch asked.

Beetee read through it, confused, "It's a mutt… but it's designed to look like… oh my…. the arena… these are the tributes they sent in. It says on here that 23 were made… 22 of which successfully designed to kill. Haymitch you said this is where they found Effie? that means…"

Haymitch finished the thought, "Effie was the only other tribute."


	6. Chapter 6

_This chapter ended up a bit longer than the last. It ends kind of abruptly but hopefully you will find a lot of answers here!_

FLASHBACK:

"Why would you think you are a mutt?" Effie asked, trying to keep her voice even.

"The others… they don't attack me"

"There could be a number of reasons why they-"

Portia cut Effie off, "Then there's this." she compared her own hand to Effie's. Effie's was still bruised from climbing the rocks before while Portia's were completely fine.

"Maybe I'm just clumsy… Portia, this is ridiculous." Effie said. But even she could tell she didn't sound convincing.

Portia stepped back, "Maybe we should spread out… I could turn at any minute."

"You're not one of them… you're not a monster." Effie said. She meant it. "Maybe you're a mutt… maybe. But you've saved me countless times and you don't behave like the others. Maybe you are like the mockingjay- they never meant to make you but here you are. We can beat them together."

"I don't know…" Portia said. Effie was sure that this Portia wouldn't attack her. She also felt that if she was completely alone, she'd start to go completely mad.

"Just stay with me for a while. We can come up with a plan to get out of here." Portia nodded reluctantly. They went back up through the boulders to the plain with the cornucopia.

In the mouth of the cornucopia, there was a mountain of food and weapons.

"This was ransacked before- at the beginning of the Games…" Portia said. "They brought new food and weapons… but why?"

Effie walked into the cornucopia. She paused, then hopped up and down a few times. "I don't know why, but the ground here is hollow- there's something under it. Maybe that's how they brought new stuff up here."

"If we move everything off, there's a chance they'll bring more up here. And-and maybe there's a way out when they bring the new stuff in." Portia said. Using that hunch, the two of them started moving everything in the cornucopia to the grass. Effie picked up a bow and arrow as she moved everything. She wondered where Katniss was, if she was alive.

Being in the arena made her forget about all of that. Peeta, Katniss, the real Haymitch. Where were they? Were they in an arena like she was? Were they hiding somewhere? Were they fighting on the front lines? The mystery made her stomach turn- she might never know.

"Effie…" Portia trailed off. Effie looked up at Portia pointing ahead of them. The new food and weapons- it was a trap to lure her here. Now, four of the mutt tributes were charging at them.

"Stay back- they won't hurt me." Portia picked up an axe in one hand and a sword in another. She ran at the mutts and started attacking them before they could react. She managed to take down three of them in a manner of seconds, but one slipped out of her reach and continued charging at Effie.

Effie still had the bow and arrow in her hands. She tried to imitate Katniss in how she held it. Her hands were shaking, but she kept her aim as much as she could on the tribute approaching her. She couldn't recognize them- that was good. It wasn't another Haymitch. There was no sentiment attached to this one- it was just a mutt.

Effie took a breath and tried to steady her hand. When the tribute was less than ten feet away, Effie let the arrow fly. It made contact with the tribute's shoulder and instantly exploded, knocking Effie backwards, farther into the cornucopia. She let go of the other arrow in her hand. She wasn't sure whether it was the arrow that was explosive or if it was the way the mutt was designed. She assumed it was the first, because the Haymitch mutt didn't explode.

Effie sat up and her head started spinning. She looked at her arms- there were patches of burns. The hair framing her face was burnt. She fell back again and couldn't get up. She wanted to look for Portia, but instead she closed her eyes.

POST WAR:

"Why would they do this? I don't get it." Haymitch said, not necessarily asking Beetee, who was still searching the computer.

"Look at this…" Beetee pointed to the screen. It was images of the mutts made for the arena.

"That's me!" Haymitch said angrily. Is this why Effie never spoke to him the way she used to? Did a mutt that looked like him attack her? He was horrified.

"There's Portia too. And previous tributes from 12 who died in the Games. But Portia… she was the mutt who wasn't designed to kill…"

Haymitch rubbed his eyes. He didn't want to look at the screen. He thought he wanted to know what happened, but now that he knew he wish he didn't.

"Haymitch- there were other arenas like this designed… with a mutt-Katniss, a mutt-Finnick, a mutt-Brutus. I- I think they were going to put the captured tributes from the Quell in these arenas if we hadn't rescued them. Effie's was the first- the trial run."

FLASHBACK:

"Effie! Effie wake up!" Effie opened her eyes. Her whole body felt like it was still on fire. She tried to sit up. A hand went to her back and helped her stay upright.

"I've got you," Portia said.

"Thanks," Effie's voice was harsh. "The other tributes…."

"They're gone." Portia said. "I don't think any more know we are here yet. But they might come later on." They were still in the cornucopia. "But I did find something out. It was too risky to move you, but last night at around midnight, at the mouth of the cornucopia, the ground opened up and a platform brought up more food and weapons. I think maybe if we move them again the platform will come up again."

"It's worth a shot." Effie said somewhat hopelessly. She didn't want to count on getting out and then it never happen.

"Can you walk?" Portia asked.

Effie slowly got up and took a step forward. Her legs were shaky. Her clothing rubbed against her skin and pain ran over the burns. But yes, she could walk.

"Save your strength," Portia saw her struggle. "Keep a look out for tributes. I'm going to start moving everything out of here."

By the time the cornucopia was once again empty, it was pitch black out. Portia and Effie ate some of the food that was brought up. Effie decided the grumbling in her stomach overruled the chance that the food might not be safe.

"If it's on a regular schedule, the platform should raise soon, I'd imagine." Portia said.

Effie shrugged.

"You don't want to get out?" Portia asked.

"I don't want to get my hopes up. And what if we get out and its even worse out there? Someone could be watching us and waiting to kill us. Or the war could be over and everything is ruined."

"Oh." Portia said quietly. "But, if they were watching, they would have stopped us by now. The platform won't come up if they know we are expecting it."

"That makes sense." Effie agreed unenthusiastically. No matter what happened next, Effie was tired of it all. She didn't want to keep going.

Suddenly, Portia knocked Effie over. "What in the-" Effie turned and saw a knife in the side of Portia's neck. Effie looked up and there was mutt-Haymitch again, alive and well. Effie forced herself to get up, biting her lip to stop from screaming in pain. She stumbled to the pile of weapons outside of the cornucopia and grabbed the first one she saw- a sword. She held it up in front of her as the mutt walked toward her, laughing.

"We both know you can't kill me." It said in Haymitch's voice.

Effie looked away from him and at Portia, slumped on the ground. "That was before you killed my friend."

"She wasn't your friend." He spat, "Who would be your friend."

"You," she laughed. "You were always my friend. Sure, we bickered. But we never meant it. It was just our way of talking…. I miss you Haymitch." She knew she wasn't talking to the real Haymitch. But she wanted to say it in that moment.

The mutt just rolled it's eyes and charged at her. Effie ducked, sticking her sword out, trying to hit him. But she wasn't that skilled at sword fighting and missed him completely. She jumped back inside and noticed the ground was starting to open. The platform was far down but she could see it. There wete no walls on two sides of the platform. Portia was right- Effie could escape. She hesitated. If she went now, there was a chance the mutt would follow her and instead of dying here she would die there.

She looked back again. The platform was still a few feet down and the mutt was coming at her again.

Effie swung the sword one more time, this swing lodging into the mutt's stomach. She let go and slid between the platform and the ground, knocking some of the weapons and food with her. She fell a few feet, then landed with a thud on a cement floor. She was out.

The room was lit only by a single light. She spotted a ladder on one wall, next to a gap in the floor. Effie climbed down. There were rows of platforms lined up, each filled with weapons and food, waiting to be brought up to the arena. No one was watching the Games. It was a prison. And Effie escaped. She kept climbing down the ladder and ended up in another small room, the last platform acting as the ceiling and the walls and floor- cement. There was a door, but Effie tried to open it and it was locked. She was trapped.

Effie sat down in one of the corners and cried. Portia was gone and Effie was completely alone now. The tears shook her whole body. She screamed, but no one was there to hear her. She screamed and kept screaming until her voice was gone.

 _EEP! Effie's out of the arena. Soon to the actual Hayffie interaction. There is still some flashback scenes but more will take place post war since Effie is out of the arena. Please leave a review letting me know if you liked this chapter/ what you think of the story. Thank you for reading!_


	7. Chapter 7

_So... new chapter is finally up! It might be a bit long, but it is the last one including flashbacks- it ends with the timeline catching up to almost where the story starts. The next chapter will be more Hayffie oriented and be following where Haymitch's storyline leaves off in this chapter. I hope you enjoy!_

FLASHBACK:

Effie stared at the wall across from her. She breathed in an out through her nose, not moving a muscle. Her throat was raw and dry. She knew there had to be food on one of the platforms up above, but she didn't know what was edible and what wasn't. Of course, she figured it wouldn't be the worst thing if she got something poisonous. She even considered finding one of the weapons on the platforms above and…

No, Effie didn't even have enough energy to think about it. All she could do was lean her head back against the wall, resigned. She didn't know if anybody would ever find her, or if she even wanted someone to.

Effie just stared at the wall across from her until unconsciousness swept over her. Then, she'd wake up and keep staring. One time she passed out and had a nightmare about the arena and the mutt-Haymitch. She kicked and screamed, punching the wall in her sleep. When she woke up, her knuckles were bruised and she was lying down on the floor. She stayed there and kept staring.

Eventually, her hunger and thirst caught up with her. She attempted once at climbing the ladder up to one of the platforms, but she was too weak even for that, and she fell back to the ground. One day, when one of the mutts still in the arena found their way to the cornucopia, a platform went up. No one came down, and Effie figured they didn't realize she was down there. Otherwise, they would have found a way to her. Another platform rose the next night and there was only one left.

Desperate for an ounce of water, Effie climbed up the ladder the next day and reached a fragile hand up to the platform and felt around for a flask of some sort. She found one that was empty. Then she climbed up onto the platform and found another that was full. That's when the platform started rising.

Effie scurried to the edge and jumped off just in time, still clutching the flask. Effie heard a crunch as she landed on the ground. A jolt of pain shuddered through her numb body. Effie wanted to cry but there were no tears left. She instead opened the flask and brought it to her mouth with shaking hands as the platform latched to the ceiling above her. The room was empty and the flask was all she had. Whether it be water or tracker jacker venom, Effie didn't care- she tilted the flask and took a sip.

POST WAR:

After their discovery, Beetee went to inform President Paylor of their recent discovery. He printed out the blueprints to take to her and left Haymitch with the computer at his insistence. Haymitch was not the best hacker, but since the computer was already logged on, he figured he could find information easier.

After about an hour, Haymitch discovered video files- from the arena. He opened up the first one. It focused only on Effie. A barely recognizable Effie. The first clip is of her waking up in the tubes, then rising up into the arena. Her hair was in a perfect pony tail and her eyes had not yet lost their expressive nature, though they were alert and scared, they were still Effie's eyes. When he had seen her last in District 12, Effie's eyes were empty and had a permanent sadness in them.

He watched as Effie looked around at the tributes. Then, the countdown ended and she was running off her platform, her eyes set on something- someone. The screen changed angles and suddenly she was running towards him. The mutt looked so much like him that a shudder ran down Haymitch's spine. When the mutt swung his axe into Effie's shoulder, Haymitch paused the video and turned away.

If the entire footage of the arena was of this mutt attacking Effie, Haymitch didn't know how he could watch it. He didn't know how Effie was able to be in his presence after that. He took a breath and continued playing the video. He felt a desire for a drink bubbling in the pit of his stomach as Effie tumbled down the hill, the blood from her shoulder streaking the grass a dark red.

FLASHBACK:

It was water in flask. Effie almost wished it had been tracker jacker venom. Enough of it and she wouldn't have had to waste away so slowly in this room. Effie tried to drink her water in moderation- the flask held no more than 12 ounces- but even so, all the water was gone within 24 hours.

Then, Effie was back to her spot, staring at the wall. It could only have been a day since she finished the water.

"Effie?" A voice called to the right of her.

Effie looked and, sitting down against the adjacent wall was Katniss, still in her jumpsuit from the Quarter Quell.

"Katniss?" Effie's voice cracked at the name. She had not spoken since she left the arena- 5 days ago.

Katniss smiled at her escort. "Yes. Surprised to see me? I bet you thought I died when that arrow hit the arena."

"No," Effie croaked, smiling back, "I knew you'd survive- you're so strong. But what are you doing here, dear?"

"I came to find you."

"Where are the others? Peeta and Haymitch? Are they safe, too?" Effie asked. She could feel her heart racing.

"No one is safe, Effie. But they are alive. They sent me here to rescue you."

"Well, then," Effie felt her Capitol voice coming back to her as she fell back into her protective role of escort to Katniss. "How do we do that?"

"They sent me here to rescue you," Katniss repeated, "but I didn't say that's what I'd do."

"W-what?" Effie didn't understand.

"You see, you reaped my sister, which made me volunteer. Then you reaped Peeta. Then you reaped me for the Quarter Quell and reaped Haymitch, which made Peeta volunteer. It's your fault- you're the reason we were sent there. You don't deserve to get rescued. You didn't deserve to escape your little Games, but you did."

"Katniss- I-I'm sorry. I wish I could take it back. I didn't understand- I was foolish back then. I know what the Games mean now. I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Effie held her head in her hands.

"Save it," Katniss snapped.

Effie reached out a hand and went to place it on top of Katniss's, but it fell right through her. It dawned on Effie that the door was still locked and the ceiling was closed with the platform- Katniss couldn't have gotten in there. "Is this a dream?"

Katniss dissolved into the air and Effie was once again alone.

POST WAR:

Haymitch sped up the footage, so he didn't hear Effie's screams or cries. He skipped parts when she was sleeping and when her and Portia were just walking from one place to another. Even so, it took him the rest of that day, the night, and all of the next two days to get through all of the footage. Beet had let him stay on his couch, as he couldn't pry to computer from Haymitch's grip.

Effie was in the arena for a little under two weeks. The footage ended with her disappearing through the floor of the cornucopia. Tears were pooled in Haymitch's eyes through the whole thing. He knew after that she must have spent almost a week in that room completely alone before they found her.

Haymitch didn't know what he was supposed to say. But, once he finished the footage, Beetee had to turn it in to Paylor, and Haymitch knew he had to go back to 12. Only he, Beetee, and Paylor now knew the truth about what happened to Effie and he needed to find some way to help her, make things ok, even though he knew that "ok" might be impossible.

FLASHBACK:

After Katniss, Effie was visited by a hallucination of Peeta, blaming her in the same way that Katniss did. He had just dissolved into the air like Katniss had when Effie heard a voice from outside the door. Was it a hallucination? Probably.

There were footsteps and the door knob started twisting, though it was still locked. Effie used all the energy she had left to back herself into the farthest corner of the room. _Its a hallucination. You're just dreaming_ , she told herself again and again. Then, there was a crash and the door swung open.

There were suddenly bright lights in Effie's face and she was being carried out of the room. Was she hallucinating? This felt so real. Suddenly, all of the sounds and lights were too much for her and everything went dark.

…

When she woke up again, Effie was in a hospital, multiple IVs in her arms. There was a thick bandage on her shoulder and a cast on her right foot. Everything came back to her- the arena, the room, the rescue.

A nurse walked up to her and put a hand on Effie's arm. "You're safe, Miss Trinket. This will be a lot to take in, but the war is over- the Districts overturned the Capitol and you were saved from the Training Center. You're scheduled to be transported to 12 once you are strong enough- some people there, your family, said they wanted to take care of you. We would let you stay in the Capitol, but things here are so chaotic since the war, you wouldn't have a place to stay. All of the hospitals are completely full." Finishing her speech, the nurse smiled and walked away, not waiting for a response from Effie.

The war was over and her family would take care of her. She figured that that meant Peeta, Katniss, and Haymitch were safe and wanted to see her. But, memories of the mutt Haymitch and the hallucination Katniss and Peeta flooded Effie's mind and her stomach churned. She didn't know if she could go back.

Effie was scared and she didn't know how she was supposed to go back to her life. There wasn't a way she knew how to. She played with the sleeve of the pajama shirt they gave her. It was a dark grey color. The flannel pants were black, grey, and white plaid.

After a few days, once Effie was healthier and stronger, the nurses tried changing her pajamas, but she ignored them, just staring at her sleeve. Her hands still looked and felt so delicate. She could still see pink and blue bruises on her knuckles.

She was told that Haymitch wanted to visit her, but he was watching out for Katniss in District 12. She was also told Peeta was also recovering in the Capitol. They tried explaining it to her, but Effie didn't exactly understand what had happened to him. All they said was that it could be dangerous if Peeta came to visit her.

So Effie was alone.

Once she was able to walk on her own, Effie was transported by train to 12. People stared at her and she stared out the window, still playing with her sleeve. The nurses had given her a small amount of money, in case she needed food on the train. But she wasn't hungry. When she got to 12, before she went anywhere else, Effie went to the nearest store she could find and bought all the liquor she could with the money she had. She went to the house the hospital assigned her and began drinking the arena away.

 _ALRIGHT! So that's that chapter! I hope you liked it. Please leave a review letting me know what you thought! Thanks for reading!_


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